New Orleans Jesters starting goalkeeper Juan Robles left the game with a concussion in the second half against the Mississippi Brilla on Saturday with the score tied 1-1, giving 16-year-old Andrew Tarbell a chance to keep the game within reach.

Daniel Erath/The Times-PicayuneNew OrleansÂ¹ Rafael Maccauro, left, heads the ball over Mississippi's Ahmad Ihmeidan during Saturday nightÂ¹s game at Pan American Stadium. The Jesters lost to the Brilla 3-2.

Less than five minutes later, Mississippi took advantage of the injury by scoring two goals in two minutes, propelling the Brilla to a 3-2 victory against the Jesters in a Premier Development League game at Pan American Stadium.

Jesters Coach Kenny Farrell said it came down to the Jesters' poor defending down the stretch.

"I don't know how to explain those two goals," Farrell said. "They were really just two balls that slipped through to the back post. They were bad goals to give away."

The goals against the Jesters came in the 72nd and 73rd minutes, not too long after Mississippi midfielder Nick Rich tied the score with a goal in the 67th minute, clearly shifting the momentum toward the Brilla.

Robles did not return after his injury, and he will be day-to-day.

Tarbell said he concentrated on quelling his nerves when he entered the game in the crucial situation, trying to avenge the Brilla's earlier 5-0 defeat of the Jesters in the season opener May 11.

"Juan got hit in the head pretty hard, so we had to make a change, and it's my job to come on and be ready as the No. 2 guy," Tarbell said. "I was mentally ready the whole game, but it's pretty numbing. You have to put it out of your mind because your nerves can really get going."

After Mississippi's two quick scores against him, Tarbell said his main focus was keeping the team strong and calm in a high-pressure situation.

"I had to keep my head held high and keep going for the rest of the game," he said. "We had a chance to come back, so I had to keep motivating everyone no matter what happened."

The Jesters started off quickly in the first half with a goal by midfielder Ederson Lopes in the 16th minute, but they did not score again until the 76th minute on a goal by midfielder Carl Reynolds when the Brilla were ahead, 3-1.

Lopes said the Jesters' strategy was to immediately put the Brilla on the defensive with a quick score. While they achieved that goal, Lopes added that the Jesters relaxed too much, enabling the Brilla to come back.

"We knew we had to win this game so we decided we were going to press them ... so we could relax for a little bit and focus on passing the ball," Lopes said. "But we gave them life with their two goals, and it was hard to get up and fight against that. I'm so upset in this moment because I know we were the best team on the field."

Farrell called the Jesters' first-half performance "almost perfect," adding New Orleans could easily have had two or three goals.

"It wasn't the replacement (of Robles)," Farrell said. "We took control again for about 10 or 15 minutes after that, but it was too late. They had won the game already.

"We looked like we couldn't do anything for about a five-minute period. We have to go back to basics."

The Jesters have three more home games to close the regular season, beginning Friday against the Atlanta Blackhawks.